TDLR Massage Therapy Rules (16 Tex. Admin. Code, Chapter 117)
Role of Chapter 117
16 Tex. Admin. Code Chapter 117 contains TDLR’s massage therapy rules. These rules implement Chapter 455 and fill in operational details: definitions, application procedures, license and renewal requirements, school and establishment standards, sanitation, recordkeeping, advertising, continuing education, inspections, complaints, and prohibited practices. A rule cannot contradict the statute. If a rule and statute appear to conflict, the statute controls and the rule is read to be consistent with it.
Concepts to know
Study the definitions carefully because a term may be defined differently in the rule than in ordinary usage. Learn which duties are mandatory (“must” or “shall”) and which are discretionary (“may”). Pay attention to requirements for physical premises, equipment cleanliness, client records, informed consent, draping, and required postings. Know the inspection and complaint provisions and the standards for schools and establishments.
Traps
Questions often test the statute/rule division. If asked for the legal basis of licensure, choose Chapter 455; if asked for a form, deadline, sanitation standard, or recordkeeping rule, choose Chapter 117. Do not assume a rule from another state matches Texas. Do not confuse a minimum standard with best practice; meeting a rule does not excuse unsafe conduct.
Worked example
An establishment wants to know how long to keep client records and how to clean linens. Those operational specifics come from Chapter 117, not directly from the Act. The Act authorizes regulation; the rule supplies the standard.
Rule of thumb: statute = authority and broad prohibitions; rule = procedures, standards, and deadlines.